SURREY (NEWS 1130) – The mayor of Surrey says postponing work on the Cloverdale ice rink and other facilities is necessary due to rising interest ratings and a sputtering global economy.
Mayor Doug McCallum spoke with reporters on Tuesday morning after having announced his city was carrying a debt of $514-million last month.
The debt load is currently closer to $316-million, and stems from projects approved by the previous council.
Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum defends plan to postpone work on a number of community facilities, including ice rink in Cloverdale. Pushes idea of fiscal restraint in a rising interest rate environment. Says tax increase in line with CPI consistent with campaign promises. pic.twitter.com/ed15pAXivE
— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) December 4, 2018
McCallum wants to rein in spending at city hall, and is aiming to cut back on previously planned spending on things like community centres, parks, and libraries in a bid to reduce future debt.
He says that’s particularly important with borrowing costs going up.
As for whether kids will be left short of ice time, McCallum’s staff has given us this chart indicating declining ice usage in recent years. pic.twitter.com/MT5NeHcVO7
— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) December 4, 2018
“We have listed the capital projects that we are going to build over the next five years, and we have listed the capital projects that we need to cut back because we are carrying too much debt.”
McCallum says he feels it’s not appropriate to borrow money to build things like ice rinks and parks.
It’s certainly a change in approach from his predecessor — Linda Hepner — who was willing to borrow if it meant building facilities in anticipation of future demand.
However, McCallum says with borrowing becoming increasingly expensive, that approach isn’t prudent.
“We had a climate in Surrey, the 10th largest city in Canada, where we had to deal with some of the fiscal realities of the world economy and the world interest rates increasing.”
As for a planned property tax increase, McCallum insists this is in line with a campaign promise to tie hikes to the Consumer Price Index.
